Australia's rooftop solar market is on track for the largest year of growth it has ever recorded, according to new SunWiz data reported by RenewEconomy on 6 November 2026.
Installations of systems up to 100 kW reached 305 MW in October. That is about 16% more than the 262 MW of October 2025 and 11% more than the 274 MW of October 2024, although newly registered capacity rose only 1% from September.
"It's the strongest October of the last four years, and volumes have been above every prior year since June," said Warwick Johnston, managing director of SunWiz. He added: "The January–October tally is the highest on record and is running 41% ahead of the same point in 2025."
How batteries are pulling solar along
The federal Cheaper Home Batteries rebate has been feeding that demand. The discount on storage requires the battery to be paired with solar, which has pushed households without panels to buy combined systems and prompted existing owners to upgrade or replace their systems to match new batteries.
National home battery installs reached an estimated 1,043 MWh in October, up 9.7% on September. It was the first month above 1 GWh since April, when a record 3,262 MWh went in ahead of rebate changes. The May changes cut the overall discount and encouraged systems of 20–25 kWh, and installs fell afterwards.
October volumes are nearly double the May low but still about 68% below April. "This is the second straight rise after August's small dip," Johnston said, describing a market that is recovering "as customers come to the market in their own time, and in preparation for summer."
Bigger systems are driving the growth
Batteries of 20 kWh and above led the month. The 20–30 kWh band reached 399 MWh, 40–50 kWh reached 273 MWh and 30–40 kWh reached 210 MWh. "Together, the bands from 20 kWh upward made up 85% of capacity," Johnston said.
The 10–20 kWh band rose 3% to 150 MWh, while systems under 10 kWh were flat at 11 MWh. The national average battery size rose for a fifth straight month to 26.74 kWh.
The state picture
New South Wales remained the largest rooftop solar market in October with 89.9 MW, up 5% on September. Queensland installed 75.8 MW, down 8%. Victoria recorded the strongest monthly growth, up 11% to 60.2 MW, and Western Australia rose 5%. The average system size edged higher after four months near 9.9 kW.
The mid-scale segment is still waiting
The next change sits above the old 100 kW ceiling. The federal government has expanded the Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme to commercial and industrial systems between 100 kW and 1 MW, with effect from 1 October for eligible systems. Applications for small-scale technology certificates for these systems open in mid to late November.
That wait has held back some installations for now. SunWiz said: "Most notable was the decline (high percentage but low volume) in commercial volumes above 50 kW." Other segments were steady.
What it means for Australian installers and developers
The October data suggests that storage is now a main route into solar sales rather than an add-on, and that larger batteries are becoming the normal order. The market has also regained momentum without April's rush to beat the rebate changes. The next test is commercial rooftops: once certificate applications open, the coming months will show whether the dip above 50 kW was only a delay.
Source: RenewEconomy, citing SunWiz data, 6 November 2026.
